Lenny Marcus Trio and Friends - Tonk: A Tribute to Ray Bryant, Vol. 2 (2013)

TONK, A Ray Bryant Tribute, follows Lenny Marcus Trio and Friends’ first tribute to Bryant called “SUN RAY,” which came out in April 2012 and quickly climbed up the top fifty jazz charts in the USA and Canada. SUN RAY made it all the way to #4 by June 2012 and was also listed #9 by JAZZ TIMES contributor Owen Cordle as one of the top jazz albums in 2012. Now, one year later comes TONK, another loving and joyous tribute to jazz master Bryant, Marcus’s piano teacher, mentor, and his Dad’s best friend. Bryant passed away in June 2011.

In TONK, pianist Lenny Marcus, bassist Rick Eckberg, and drummer Larry Scott are joined by saxophonist Tom Artwick and percussionist Vladimir Espinosa. The musicians explore more of Ray’s compositions such as Slow Freight, Tonk, Up Above the Rock, a new take on Cubano Chant, among others. TONK also features songs Bryant loved to play, such as the St. Louis Blues, C Jam Blues, and Old Devil Moon, and includes some Marcus originals, Blues Song For Ray, Break Tune in G, and Swamp Boogie. The Lenny Marcus Trio showcased TONK at Blues Alley in D.C. in January 2013 and “brought the house down” as Ray used to do at that same venue for decades. This album, in a word, swings!